Beech Fork
High Water
This was my first boating trip. Was would transcend into all of this. The club, the whitewater trips, the enthusiasm for paddling and the outdoors. I recently ran across the date for this trip in my old calendar so I thought I would recall the trip the best I could.
I remember this trip very well because it was my first. It was raining and cold. But Eric, Hart and I had a boat trip planned so we went. It was about 45 degrees on the water. We ran the Beech Fork at a high level.
Eric in Smitty’s Dagger RPM and Hart and I in the Blue Hole. We had trouble keeping a straight line down the river and towards the end it got cold, but we enjoyed it and made it through the day. Eric and Hart ran the rapid in the canoe and I walked it. I did not want to chance getting wet and cold. I was weak back then.
There were some raft trips and canoes trips that came before this one. But it was this canoe trip that I knew would be the start of an obsession.
Here is an email I wrote from around the time of this trip:
I would like to get in on some kayaking. The next time you guys go to the Elkhorn let me know. It is vital to my mental state that I get on the water as much as possible. Eric, Hart and I went down the Beechfork in the freezing cold, but we discovered a really great class III+ rapid at the end of it. So if you ever need some whitewater to practice on, just know it’s there right in the backyard of Bardstown. My plan is to get a kayak into a pool and practice rolls. Then onto the river to learn how to maneuver. Then I want to go down the Ocoee and wherever else there is whitewater. I’ll bring the camera, we’ll get something made for the film festival.
Recent Comments